Monday, February 07, 2005

Sina Q4 profit up but forecast lags

From MarketWatch: Sina Q4 profit up but forecast lags"Sina Corp. reported late Monday that fourth-quarter net income almost doubled, but the Chinese Internet firm's first quarter forecast fell short of analyst estimates and its shares tumbled 20 percent in late trading."

"Sina said after the close of markets Monday that net income for the three months ended in December climbed to $17.4 million, or 30 cents a share, from $9.3 million, or 16 cents, in the same period a year earlier.
Excluding stock-based compensation costs and other charges, Sina said earnings were $18.4 million, or 31 cents a share, in line with the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call."

"Fourth-quarter sales rose 49 percent to $56.9 million from $38.3 million, slightly higher than analyst expectations, as the company sold more online advertising and provided Internet searches and wireless services to more Chinese consumers.
However, Sina forecast that first quarter sales would fall in a range between $43 million and $47 million, less than the $57 million analysts were expecting."Read more